Naked
by CManoso's Babe
Summary: A short story inspired by Ella Mai's song, Naked. Definitely Babe HEA. It is my first story on FanFiction, so I hope you enjoy it.
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: This is my first Fan Fiction & also the first creative story I have ever written for another person's pleasure, so please be nice and gentle. I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story, and the lyrics that appear in this story, are not mine. They belong to Ella Mai. Please enjoy!**_

**Naked – Chapter 1**

It's a beautiful, sunny afternoon in Trenton, New Jersey. We don't get many afternoons like this - the sky is a clear, bright, sparkling blue with no clouds present. If Ranger was here, he would compare the sky to the color of my eyes. Unconsciously, I find myself smiling just thinking about him. That man really loves my eyes. And I'm not complaining.

The sun is warm and inviting – it is warming up my hands and arms through the windshield of my car. I look down and see my knuckles are white from the way I have been gripping the steering wheel for the past few minutes. I am nervous to let go. I am so angry that I honestly don't know what my hands would do if they weren't gripping the steering wheel. I have to calm down enough to drive, and I really don't want to be sitting out here anymore, so I need to calm down quickly. I turn the radio on to distract myself and start the process.

Deep breathes, Steph. Deep breathes. In, 1, 2. Out, 3, 4, 5, 6. In, 1, 2. Out, 3, 4, 5, 6.

I let go of the steering wheel and start stretching my fingers and hands, letting the blood flow back through them. Continuing to breathe deep. In, 1, 2. Out, 3, 4, 5, 6. I can feel the tension slowly leaving my body, but the anger I feel towards Joe Morelli is still there. I don't think that anger well ever truly leave my body again. I am currently sitting outside his house and I really don't want to be here.

With another set of deep breathes, I start the car and decide that I am calm enough to head back to my apartment. It is mid-afternoon and traffic is light. I have always loved driving – the independence it gives you is empowering. But it also gives you too much time to think and that is exactly what I don't want at the moment. I don't want to think about why I am so angry. I don't want to think about the fight that Joe and I have just had. I don't want to think about how disappointed and angry my mother is going to be when she hears that I'm single again (and for good this time too). I don't want to think about why I stayed with Joe for so long. I don't want to think about all the hurtful things he said and all the horrible names he called me. And now I am thinking about all of it, and before I even know it, anger is building up inside of me again.

I turn the radio louder trying to drown out my thoughts. I decided to focus on whatever song is on the radio. As a pull into my parking lot, the song changes and I immediately like the beginning tune of the next song. I park the car, turn off the engine and something tells me that I need to hear the lyrics. I put my head back, close my eyes and just let the tune and lyrics wash over me:

_Take away the big shirts, the tattoos, the sweatpants and Vans_

_Okay, I don't wear no makeup, no purse in my hands_

_My resting bitch face is mistaken for the mean girl_

_But what if I told you_

_There's nothing I want more in this world_

_Than somebody who loves me naked_

_Someone who never asks for love_

_But knows how to take it_

_Are you that somebody?_

_Who sees a wall and breaks it_

_Are you ready to fight just to see what's lost behind my flaws?_

_Can you love me naked?_

_Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah, Naked_

_Yeah yeah, yeah yeah, yeah yeah, Naked_

_Oh-oh-oh yeah, yeah_

_Might be a bitch in the morning so catch me at night time_

_Some of my friends think I'm moody but I think I'm just fine_

_I could be pissed but I act like I'm not_

_I really remember when I say I forgot_

_No matter how hard I try_

_To run away from love at the end of the night_

_I need somebody who loves me naked_

_Someone who never asks for love_

_But knows how to take it_

_Are you that somebody?_

_Who sees a wall and breaks it_

_Are you ready to fight just to see what's lost behind my flaws?_

_Can you love me naked?_

_I need someone who loves me when I wake up_

_Who thinks I'm beautiful when I'm looking fucked up_

_I want the perfect love, am I asking too much_

_Someone who shoots for the stars_

_Knowing I think I'm never good enough_

_I need somebody who loves me naked_

_Someone who never asks for love_

_But knows how to take it_

_Are you that somebody?_

_Who sees a wall and breaks it_

_Are you ready to fight just to see what's lost behind my flaws?_

_Can you love me naked?_

_** (Naked by Ella Mai)**_

By the end of the song, the tears are streaming down my face. I pull my legs up into my chest and wrap my arms around them. I bury my face in my legs and let the crying take over. My whole body is trembling. The sobbing is violent and ugly, but I don't care. I want somebody that can love me naked – not physically naked, Joe and I have never had a problem with that side of our relationship, but someone that can love me for me, for who I am, for my job, for all my failures and mistakes and for my annoying little quirks. I want someone that doesn't want to change me into the perfect 'burg wife or make me quit my job. I want someone that can support and love me. Someone that wants to see me fly higher and higher on my own.

Crying is exhausting. I wipe my eyes with the bottom of my t-shirt, release my legs and pull myself out of the car. I collect the bag from the backseat of the car – it contains the last few things that I had at Joe's place. I am happy to say that there is no sign at Joe's place of me every being there. That's good because I am done with that part of my life. I won't waste another minute of my life on that good for nothing asshole.

I make my way into the apartment building and take the stairs up to the second floor. There is less chance of me running into anyone on the stairs. I unlock my door, drop my bag in the entrance hall, say hello to Rex and make my way through to the bedroom. I change into a pair of sweats and fall backward on to the bed, into my thinking position. I allow myself to think about everything that happened to today. I think about how my day started and how well it was going; about how proud I was of myself; and how excited I was to share the news with Ranger and Joe; and then about Joe and my fight.

_**Flashback:**_

_I woke up a few minutes before my alarm this morning. It was an early morning for me, but for once I was excited to start my day. I was going after Tom Stadler today. He wasn't one of my usual skips. He was wanted for robbery and attempted murder. His wife had sent him to the convenience store to buy diapers and baby food in the middle of the night. He had forgotten to pick them up on the way home from work earlier that day. It wasn't his fault that he forgot – he had been working a triple shift, so 32 hours, and just wanted to get home to see his wife and 16-day old baby. He got to the convenience store and went to the counter to pay for the items when he realized he had left his wallet at home. He always went to this store and he knew the young man behind the counter. They lived 5 houses apart. He explained to the young guy what had happened and said that he could drop the money off early tomorrow morning on his way to the office. The man refused and Tom's temper snapped. Before he knew it, the police were pulling him off of the young man. _

_Tom Stadler wasn't considered dangerous, but his bond was high and I was excited to bring him in – it would mean that I can pay my rent and buy a few groceries for the house. Tom was scared of going to jail and was hiding at this cousin's house._

_I was so proud of myself. I couldn't wait to tell Joe and Ranger about how well my apprehension had gone. No cars were blown up. I didn't land in any garbage. Nobody was shot. I didn't have to call Ranger for back up. But I did have to chase my skip for two blocks and through a few backyards. Coming through one of the backyards, I caught my jeans on the fence and tore the top of my jean leg. The tear couldn't have been more than 7cm long, and I didn't even think about the tear again. Until I got to Joe's house._

_After apprehending my FTA, I dropped him off at the police station and collected my body receipt. Everywhere I went in the police station, people kept staring and giggling behind their hands. To be honest, I didn't think much of it. I pushed it aside thinking it was some new rumor or gossip going around the 'burg about me. I was on my happy cloud and I wanted to stay there – no gossip was bringing me down just yet. _

_On my way back to the bonds office, I decided to stop at Joe's place. He has been working night shift so he should be at home resting. I really wanted to see how proud he would be when he knew that I had brought in such a big bond with no problems or back up. Just maybe he would see that I am competent enough to do my job. When I arrived at Joe's house, he was furious. I could tell immediately. The anger was pouring off of his body. He was on the phone when I walked in the door. Joe was pacing and I could see from the tracks in the carpet that he had been pacing for a while already. Something was wrong. He lifted his head and caught me standing in the doorway watching him. His eyes met with mine and I immediately knew that the anger was directed at me. What had I done?_

"_Joe, what's wrong?" I didn't know what else to say at this point. Mentally I went through my day looking for what I could have done to make him this angry._

"_What's wrong? What's wrong?! I have had a dozen or so phone calls telling me about my slut of a girlfriend bringing in her FTA with her lace underwear on display for everyone to see. And as if that isn't bad enough, you have that thug's name embroidered across them. Why? Why, cupcake? Why?!" By this point in his rant, he is screaming._

_I look down and suddenly see that the small tear on my hip had ripped further and as Joe had pointed out my underwear was on display for everyone to see. I felt my cheeks go red and the black dots appear before my eyes. I push them away, try to pull my t-shirt down further and focus back on Joe ranting in front of me._

_The rest of the fight continued the same way as every other fight that we had had. I embarrassed him. I was a joke. I was incompetent. I should just give up, quit my job, move in with him and become the 'burg wife I was supposed to be._

_I had gone there excited and so extremely proud of myself, only to be torn down, verbally abused and made to feel worthless and unloved all over again. I calmly went upstairs, packed the last of my stuff, and told Joe that we were done. I was surprised at the feeling of relief that flooded me once I had said all that I needed to say._

_**End of Flashback**_

I pull out my phone and search for the song I heard in the car earlier. I put it on repeat, lay it on the bed, turn onto my side, pull my legs up to my chest, close my eyes and drift off to a restless sleep.

_**Note: This is the first time I have ever posted a story online for other people to read, so please let me know what you think. I have written Chapter 2, which I will post tomorrow hopefully.**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**Disclaimer: This is my first Fan Fiction & also the first creative story I have ever written for another person's pleasure, so please be nice and gentle. I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story is Naked by Ella Mai.**_

_**Your reviews and comments from Chapter 1 blew me away. Thank you for your kind words and support. I hope you enjoy Chapter 2.**_

**Naked – Chapter 2**

I am pulled from my sleep by my phone ringing. It better be damn important - I was having an amazing dream about Ranger. I finally grew a pair and told Ranger how I felt about him, and he was telling me how much he loved me. Ranger and I have gotten closer since his last mission. We check in with each other daily – just to see that the other is ok and alive – well, that's him mostly checking on me, but I love hearing his voice and the little bit he does tell me about his day.

The ringing stops and I continue thinking about how much closer Ranger and I have gotten. Over the past month and a half, he has told me about his family; a few happy memories from his childhood; about some of the adventures him, Tank, Lester, and Bobby have been on; about how he got to know some of the different Merry Man; why he opened RangeMan; and a few other interesting stories.

I know that he can't talk about his missions, so I don't push for information, but I would love to know what happened on this last mission that changed him so much. Since he came back, he hasn't been pushing me away, but actually, pulling me closer in. He has been opening up to me; spending any free time with me; training and helping me even more; supporting me in every way; and pointing out the negative things Joe does instead of trying to push me towards Joe. If I didn't know any better, I would think that he wanted a relationship with me, but we all know that his life doesn't lend itself to that. What's the chance that this last mission changed his view on relationships too?

Listening to the song still playing on repeat, I start to realize that Ranger is the 'somebody' that I want to love me naked. He doesn't try to change me or force me to do things. He considers my opinion and thoughts. He sees me as more than I currently am. He doesn't expect me to love him, but he actually works for it – he spoils me and shows me respect, he supports me and encourages me. He wants me to fly and be the person that I can be one day, someday.

An unknown feeling comes over me and with it, the confidence to make the decision to take a chance and see how Ranger feels about an us – a me and him. I don't need marriage, kids and a white picket fence, but I would like to see if there is a future for us. I would need commitment and exclusivity. I can't do one night stands with Ranger. At the same time, I don't want to rush into a new relationship with him. I want to make sure that he isn't a rebound - I want a _long-term_ relationship with him. I also want to learn a little more about myself. Who is Stephanie Plum, without a man attached to her? Since college I have been attached to one asshole after the next, always trying to be a bit of myself with a bit of what they wanted and needed to.

So, I decide that the next time I see him I _am_ going to tell him that I broke it off with Joe permanently, and see what he does with that news.

My phone starts ringing again. I look down at the screen and see that it is Ranger. I can't control the smile that breaks out across my face.

"Yo," I answer, a little nervous.

"Babe?"

"Ranger?"

"That is my line."

"I know, but I like putting a smile on your face." By this point, I am worried that my face might split in two with the smile I am sporting.

"Just hearing your voice puts a smile on my face," he answers. I can feel the lump forming in my throat and my eyes start to get watery. I have to stare at the ceiling to stop the tears from flowing down my face. He always knows exactly what to say, and after the day I have had, those words are just a bit too much.

"Babe?" I realize that I have been quiet for too long.

"Yes, Ranger."

"I am proud of you, Babe."

I swear that he is trying to make me cry now. I start blinking furiously to make them stay at bay. But I don't understand why he is proud.

"For what?" I say with a weaker voice than I wanted.

"For getting your man with no problems and all by yourself. I heard that you did a great job bringing in Tom Stadler."

I have to pull the phone away from my ear so that I can wipe the tears away and to stop him from hearing me sniffle. I get the warm, fuzzy feeling in my stomach and I know that he is being sincere. I think back to this afternoon, and how proud I had felt. That one sentence was all I had wanted to hear when I arrived at Joe's but he couldn't do it. He couldn't see that.

I try to clear my throat, getting my voice steady enough to talk. I don't want Ranger knowing that I am crying. I take a deep breathe and hope that my voice sounds strong enough. "Thank you, Ranger." But even I hear my voice break on the end there.

"Babe?" I can hear the concern in his voice. I have to pull myself together. I can't have Ranger thinking that I am weak. I take a few more deep breathes, but he speaks again before I can answer.

"Steph, are you crying? What happened? Are you ok?" I can hear the concern and worry in his voice and I know that I can't respond just yet without giving away that I am indeed crying.

There is movement and soft noise in the background of our call, and I realize that Ranger is in the control room at RangeMan. It clicks that he is probably seeing where my GPS puts me. I realize that I need to tell him that I am ok before I have every available unit descending on my apartment and scaring my neighbors.

"Ranger, I'm ok." I put every ounce of strength into that answer, trying to sound strong and confident in my answer.

"Babe, what's going on?" I should have known that he knows me better than that.

"It has just been a rough day. That's all."

"Would you like to talk about it?" What? Ranger is offering to listen to me bitch about my day?

"I don't want to bore you with the details."

"Babe, nothing is boring when it comes to you. I care, Steph." Huh? I'm not sure if that is a compliment or an insult. Instead, I roll my eyes and sigh. Ranger isn't going to let it go and I do want to see him, so why not?

"Ranger, have you got dinner plans tonight?"

"What do you have in mind, Babe?"

"Can we stay on 7? There is something I want to talk to you about and I don't want the 'burg gossiping about it."

"Sure, Steph."

"What time are you free?"

"Whenever you're ready. Drop into my office when you arrive and we can go up to 7 together."

And he was gone. I have often wondered if he has the same phone manners with his mother. From everything he has told me about her, I don't think she would put up with it. I would love to see him speaking to his mother. I can't imagine the big, badass, mercenary getting disciplined by his small built Cuban mother. Just thinking about it, makes me giggle.

Getting off of the bed, I mentally go through what I need to do before leaving. I don't know what is going to happen tonight, but I am going to tell Ranger about Joe and me; and I would like to make it known to him how much his support, trust, and encouragement mean to me. I'll take the rest from there.

An hour and forty minutes later, I am pulling into the RangeMan garage. I decided on a tight fitting, low cut, light blue t-shirt that sits about two inches above my skinny, low cut, denim jeans, and shows just a little cleavage. I have on my 4-inch FMPs so that I come eye to eye with Ranger and still look sexy. We are only having dinner on 7 and I would like to be comfortable enough to laze around the apartment with him, but sexy enough to make his chocolate eyes go dark black. My hair is sitting just past my shoulders in loose curls. My stomach has been in a knot since I ended the call, but I am not backing out of my decision.

I park in one of Ranger's empty spots and head to the elevator. I give the camera a little finger wave and will the butterflies in my stomach to calm down. By the time the elevator stops on the 5th floor, I feel a little queasy from nerves. Lester and Bobby are standing at the elevator doors staring at me with looks of concern. I didn't even notice the doors open.

"Beautiful! Are you ok? You look like you might pass out." Lester says with concern plastered all over his face.

"Lester. Bobby. I'm great. Just a little nervous." I choke out as a way of greeting.

Lester leans forward and engulfs me in a bear hug. He spins me around, trying to ease the tension in my body and getting me to laugh at the same time. When he feels me relax and start laughing, he slows down and says: "I know you have dinner plans with Ranger, so I hope the nerves are because you're finally getting your head out of your gorgeous ass and telling Ranger how you feel about him."

Bobby hits Lester upside his head and mumbles a remark about Ranger killing him for the ass comment, but I am too shocked by his comment to actually listen to Bobby. My mouth is hanging open. I know these guys are trained to read body language but how does he know what I'm about to do. Is it written all over my face?

Lester and Bobby start chuckling. Obviously, I said that last part out loud. Glad there was no one else around to hear it.

"Bomber, the only 2 people that don't know how you and Ranger feel about each other are _you_ and _Ranger," _Bobby explains.

"Beautiful, there is no reason to be nervous. We all know how much Ranger is in love with you." Lester adds.

Wow! Really? They all know that Ranger is in love with me? I stand there mimicking a fish, unsure what to say to that. I look up to see Lester and Bobby just staring at me, with shit-eating grins on their faces.

"Beautiful, we have to go. We are on our way to meet a client. Good luck and I will see you tomorrow." Lester says before him and Bobby give me one last hug and duck into the elevator.

I gather myself and start walking down the hallway. Each and every Merry Man I pass on my way to Ranger's office has to give me a hug and I suddenly realize that I love these guys. Many of them have become my friends and even family. One of my concerns with telling Ranger how I feel is that if he says he doesn't want a relationship with me, I wouldn't only be losing my best friend, but also a lot of my closest friends too.

Before I know it, I am standing outside his door. Boy, am I glad his door is closed. I take a minute to gather my thoughts, smooth out my outfit, fluff my hair and take a few breaths. I open my eyes again, only to see the most beautiful chocolate eyes standing right in front of me. He has his 200-watt smile plastered across his face.

"Babe, whatever you want to talk about must be serious because you are very nervous."

I just stand there, staring at Ranger. It has always amazed me how he knows and understands me so well.

"Are you ready to go up to 7?" I ask.

"Let me just shut down my laptop and tell Tank we are heading up. Give me a minute?"

Ranger takes my hand and pulls me into his office, closing the door behind us. He never lets go of my hand, pulling me over to his desk, where he sits down and then pulls me down into his lap. I instantly cuddle my body into his, and his arm comes around me pulling me closer to him. My nerves slip away and I can't remember why I was so nervous to talk to him. He obviously loves me. I just hope it isn't in his own special way anymore. I close my eyes and let his warmth, love, and strength move between and around us. I feel Ranger kiss my forehead and I open my eyes to see him looking at me with a 200-watt smile and love in his eyes.

He leans down so his lips are right against my ear and whispers, "I have always loved you, Steph."

Wow! I hold my breath, waiting for the qualifier that normally comes after that. But instead, all I see is love, sincerity, and passion in his eyes. Ranger stands up taking me with him. He places me on my feet and takes my hand in his.

"I just need to talk to Tank, and then we can go upstairs."

I nod and follow him out of his office and into Tank's. As we walk into Tank's office, he looks up and for a split second I see surprise cross his face when he sees our joint hands, before his blank face slams into place.

"I'm offline for the night. No calls or texts." Ranger says.

"You have a meeting at 10 tomorrow with a new client."

"I will be there. But nothing between now and then." Tank nods and moves for his phone to advise the core team.

Ranger turns and we head to the elevator, hand in hand. It's nice. Once in the elevator, Ranger puts his arm around my shoulders and pulls me into his side. I can't help but lean into him. I could definitely get used to this treatment from him. Too quickly the elevator dings and the doors open on the 7th floor.

Ranger unlocks the apartment door, still not releasing me from his side. He drops his keys in the dish and his utility belt on the sideboard. I take off my bag and put it next to his keys. I let go of his hand, to grab us 2 waters from the fridge. But when I turn around, he is standing right behind me.

"Babe, how do you feel about tacos for dinner?" Ranger asks as he reopens the fridge to look inside.

"That sounds great, but that doesn't sound like something Ella would make unless it is Tacos Gourmet."

"It isn't an Ella dish," Ranger smirks at me. That smile makes my body go warm in so many places, and my cheeks heat up. I can't seem to take my eyes off of that beautiful smile.

When sense comes back to me, I have so many questions. If it isn't an Ella meal, who is going to make them? He knows I can't cook to save my life, and I have never seen Batman in the kitchen or cooking. I try to raise an eyebrow to Ranger, showing I don't understand his answer. I fail miserably at raising just one, but Ranger understands and puts me out of my misery.

"Babe, I thought _we_ could cook dinner together tonight. Is that ok?" Ranger asks with his 200-watt smile.

_Cook dinner? Us? Huh? Why? But Ella's cooking is great._ I thought. Surprise, horror, and shock coursing through my body. _I can't cook. My mom chases me out of the kitchen every time I try to help._

Ranger bursts out laughing, before leaning forward and lightly kissing my lips. I obviously said that last part out loud. Oops. I can feel my cheeks flush bright pink. But that kiss was definitely worth it.

"Trust me, Babe." Is all he says to clarify to that before he takes my hand and leads me across the kitchen. He sits me in one of the bar stools and lightly kisses my forehead, before making his way back to the fridge.

Ranger pulls out an onion, garlic, ground beef, lettuce, spinach, tomato, beans, and a few other ingredients and spices. He places everything on the prep counter, before taking out a large knife, chopping board, and skillet.

I am blown away and turned on watching Ranger in the kitchen. He moves around with a grace any Michelin-star-chef's wishes they had.

"Do you see something you like, Babe?" Ranger asks with his mischievous grin plastered across his face. I blush but don't find it necessary to answer him. I'm pretty sure he knows how I feel about him.

"Is there anything I can help with, Ranger?" My 'burg manners showing their head.

"Would you like to pour us each a glass of wine, Babe?"

I nod my head and grab two glasses off the shelf and the wine. I pour us each a glass and walk over to Ranger to give him his. I run my hand up his back, telling Ranger that I am behind him. He snakes an arm around my waist and pulls me closer towards him.

"Would you like to help me cut the ingredients, Babe?" He whispers into my ear. His lips so close to my ear that I feel them move along the lobe, giving me goosebumps as he speaks. With his lips that close to my body, it takes me a while to respond.

"Will you show me how to?" I ask a little shyly. I have never been great in the kitchen, but tonight I don't want to just sit back and watch. I want to help Ranger cook us dinner.

"Of course." And with that answer, he places the chopping board, a sharp knife, and an onion in front of us. He wraps my hand around the knife and his hand around mine, showing me the correct way of cutting the onion. Before I know what is happening, the onion and garlic are already cut and ready. We continue in the same fashion for a few more of the ingredients. I already have the hang of this, but I really don't want Ranger to let go and move away yet. I like the feeling of being in his arms. I feel safe and secure here. With each movement, I can feel the day's tension melting away and being replaced with happiness and contentment.

"Babe, could you start frying the onion and garlic for me? I will finish prepping the rest of the ingredients and take over in a minute."

"Ranger, are you sure you want me to do that by myself? You know I can't cook, right? I don't want to ruin our dinner so I think it's better that I don't." I reply quickly and I feel his body tense behind me.

Ranger uses his arm that is around my waist to turn me around and face him. He places a finger under my chin and gently pushes it upwards until I am looking directly into his eyes. His smile is gone and I can see a little anger burning in his eyes. The anger isn't directed at me, but I'm not sure what has made him so serious.

"Steph, you can do anything you put your mind too. _Anything! _Don't let your mother's bullshit get to you." He says a little harshly.

Before I have time to respond, his lips are on mine. His tongue is moving along my lips, waiting for permission to enter. I open my mouth and kiss him back, trying to convey all my thanks to him for having faith in me.

_**Note: I hope you enjoyed Chapter 2. Please let me know what you think. I have an idea of where I want the story to go next, but it will take me a day or 2 to finish Chapter 3.**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Disclaimer: This is my first Fan Fiction & also the first creative story I have ever written for another person's pleasure, so please be nice and gentle. I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story is Naked by Ella Mai.**_

_**I have loved reading all of your reviews and comments from Chapter 1 & 2. Thank you for your kind words and support. I am sorry that I haven't replied to everyone yet, but I thought I would post Chapter 3 first and then continue replying. I hope you enjoy Chapter 3.**_

**Naked – Chapter 3**

I had so much fun learning to cook. I learnt more in one night in the kitchen with Ranger, than I have in 34 years of being in the kitchen with my mother. In the end, I did most of the cooking with his guidance and support – I think he wanted to prove to me that I could do it. Over cooking dinner, Ranger told me stories about how his mother and grandmother taught him to cook. I could see a sense of happiness and longing in his eyes and hear nostalgia in this voice. The stories, tonight and over the past few weeks, have helped me to see the human side of Ranger. For years I have always thought of him as a superhero, my own personal Batman. Perfection. Never able to do anything wrong. No emotions Ranger. But the stories that he has shared, have really shown me a whole new side to him.

"Babe?" Ranger calling my name brought me back from my daydreaming. At the moment, we are lying on the couch. Ranger sitting in the corner of the couch, slightly turned so that his right side is leaning against the armrest. My head in his lap. We are supposed to be watching a movie, but I was so distracted by my daydreaming that I'm not sure if my eyes were even open.

Turning my head, so that I could see his beautiful face, I answered him. "Yeah, Ranger."

"Do you know that the movie finished about 10 minutes ago?"

I felt my cheeks turn a warm red. I hadn't noticed. It was my idea to watch a movie. I was trying to delay going home and giving myself another 1 and a bit hours to spend with him. Alone. I still wanted to talk to him. I wanted to tell him about my day, and me calling it quits with Joe, but I just didn't know how to start the conversation.

"Nah. Sorry, I was slightly distracted."

"I realised that. Your eyes were closed. Care to share what was making you smile like that?"

"Just reminiscing about our night of cooking," I admitted.

"Babe?"

"And maybe I was thinking about how much I like hearing all of these stories about you and your family," I admitted a little too quickly.

"Really?" Ranger asked, raising his one eyebrow.

"Yeah. I like the look of happiness you get in your eyes when you talk about your family and your childhood. To be honest, it makes me quite jealous."

It's amazing what information he can get out of me with just his one-word questions. No wonder the government makes use of his interrogation skills.

This time he didn't even need a one-word question to get further information out of me. Ranger just raised his eyebrow and waited for a further explanation. Knowing that he can and will wait all night for my answer, I all to quickly confessed my reasoning's for feeling jealous.

"Well, I suppose it has to do with the love that you feel for your family. Whenever you talk about them, the stories and memories that you share have them supporting you, helping you, encouraging you. I can hear the love and respect that you have for them and that they have for you. I suppose that I'm a little jealous of that. I'm a little jealous of the relationship that you have with your mother and father and how supportive they are and have been of you and your decisions in life. Sometimes, I wish that I had a family like that. A mother that would like to teach me how to cook, and a father that wants to be involved in and a part of my life." Without even realising it, Ranger had started to run his fingers up and down my arm. The motion was soothing and relaxing, letting me know that he was hearing me and knows the toll that statement took on me.

Sitting me up in one quick motion, Ranger pulled me closer towards him and cupped my face, so that I was forced to look into his eyes and see the truth and honesty in what he said next.

"Steph, I have told you before and I'll say it again. What is mine, is yours. And that goes for my family too. You will see in time."

I sat on the couch shocked. What? How? I don't understand. The confusion obviously showed on my face, because before I could voice my concern Ranger explained.

"My family know all about you. Lester, Tank, Bobby, and a few of the other guys have been sharing stories about you for years. They have even seen a few candid shots of you, courtesy of Lester's phone. My mother and father have been begging me to bring you around to meet them. And I know that the second they lay eyes on you, they will want you to be a part of their family."

"Wow!" Oh, wow! That is all I can even think about responding at the moment. I need to lie on my bed, in my thinking position, and contemplate that a while longer before I even think about responding any further to that confession from Ranger.

"Babe, would you like to meet my family?" Ranger asked nervously.

Really?! Was that nervousness that I heard in Ranger's voice? Does Ranger get nervous? Nah, I must have heard incorrectly. Batman doesn't get nervous about anything, after all, he is Batman.

Before I could respond, and looking even more nervous, Ranger said, "Celia, my eldest sister, had a baby boy a few weeks ago. Next week is his baptism service in Miami. Would you like to go? Lester, Tank and Bobby have been invited too."

"Yes! Of course, yes!" I said too eagerly and quickly, but I wasn't going to give him a chance to change his mind or withdraw his offer. Of course, I want to meet his family. I'm not a fan of babies or church, but it's a small sacrifice to make if I get to meet the people that brought Ranger into this world. And besides, I will have Lester, Bobby and Tank there for support too.

A few moments passed with us just sitting on the couch in a comfortable silence, both deep in our own thoughts. After that confession, I thought that it was definitely time for me to tell Ranger about my day and the small realisation that I had come to today.

"Ranger?" I could hear an ounce of nervousness in my own voice. I knew it wouldn't be lost on Ranger either.

"Yeah, Babe."

"Ranger, I want to tell you about something that I did today… and maybe … a little something about a … realisation … no, maybe more, of a decision … that I made today." Boy, was I suddenly nervous and it could be heard loud and clear in my voice.

I never even noticed how sweaty my palms had gotten or that I was wringing my hands until Ranger leaned over and took my hands in his. The physical contact allowed me to absorb some of his strength. But when I looked up at his face to meet his eyes, I noticed that his blank face was firmly in place. No! Damn it! I hate his blank face and especially now. I needed to see how he felt about Joe and I breaking up. I needed to see if there was a little bit of hope in his eyes for a possible us. But with his blank face in place, there was no chance of that now. I had the urge to jump up from the couch, grab my bag, and run. Run all the way back to my apartment where I could lock the door and hide. Hideaway from my feelings and from Ranger and his damn, blank face.

But instead, I put on my big girl panties and took a deep breath. If Ranger could open up and tell me about his childhood and family, things he has never shared; then I could ask him to remove his blank face and tell him about my day.

"Ranger, if I am going to tell you about this, then I need you to remove your blank face. I need to see how you feel and what you are thinking. You can't cut me out, not now."

I kept my eyes on his face, and I could see the emotions returning to his eyes. The first one I noticed was surprise, and then I could clearly see that he was sorry. "Sorry, Steph, I didn't even notice that I did it. I think it is just a natural response sometimes."

Ok. Steadying myself, I took a deep breath and said "I broke up with Joe today. I was standing in his house listening to him shout at me about how stupid I was, about what I disappointment I was, about every time I had failed at my job; about all my shortcomings and mistakes; and about how he wanted me to quit my job and get married to him and become the perfect 'Burg housewife, etc. etc. etc. Nothing I hadn't heard before. But that's when it hit me! We get together, we do the same thing, we have the same fight, we break up, we spend time apart, we get back together thinking things will be different, but they don't change. Our fights don't change and we don't change. I don't want that anymore. I don't want to be that underachieving, disappointment anymore. I want to change."

I stopped for a second to try and get the sudden anger that I was feeling to Joe under control before I continued. The next part was about me and hopefully, one day, someday, be about Ranger and me too. So, I don't want to go into this part angry. I took a few more deep breaths and continued.

"I want to change, Ranger. I want to be the Steph that I always knew I could be. I want to be the Steph that you see in me. I want to be the true Steph, the Steph that can fly and do anything she puts her mind to. And maybe, when I find that part of me, I can find a guy that will love me for me. A guy that won't want to change my job, or change me into someone that he wants me to be. But, someone that can support me and be proud of me, for just being me. Someone that I can break down the wall for and allow to see the true, real Steph. 'Someone that can love me Naked.' "

Wow, I got it all out. I had confessed it all to Ranger. I had told him everything. There were so many emotions going through his eyes as I spoke. I couldn't even identify them all. But I did see anger at Joe for the things that he said. I saw hope when I spoke about the never-ending cycle. I saw a little surprise when I mentioned the Steph that I wanted to be. And I saw love when I spoke about the guy that I wanted to be with.

Ranger cupped my face in his hand and lowered his lips to mine. The kiss was light and loving. He wanted to convey his love, support, and encouragement for what I had expressed and I could immediately tell that he was going to stand by me and support me through all of this. But most of all that kiss told me that he loved the change that I had just made today.


	4. Chapter 4 - I need Coffee

_**Disclaimer: This is my first Fan Fiction and I am loving the process so far. Your reviews and comments have brightened my day and inspired me to take this story a little further than I originally planned.**_

_** I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story is Naked by Ella Mai.**_

_**Have a great day and Enjoy chapter 4**_

**Naked – Chapter 4**

I woke up to a noise in my apartment. I should be more alarmed, but I can't be bothered when it's this early in the morning. If a stalker wants to come in and murder me, bring it on. I'm not getting out of bed. No way! I roll over and dare a peek at the bedside clock to see what the time is. 8:22 am. Argh… I immediately realise that the noise must be Lester putting on a pot of coffee. For the past few months, I have been working on Mondays and Fridays at Rangeman doing searches, consulting on installations, and visiting a few clients with Lester, my new partner. My Rangeman days used to start with the 8 am morning meeting, but after one particular morning Ranger decided to change my starting time to 10 am, due to safety concerns. Cuddling back into my pillow, waiting for Lester to join me, I thought about that morning.

_**Flashback**_

My alarm went off at 6:20 am. I was exhausted. Joe and I were in a fighting stage of our relationship and had been arguing until the early hours of the morning before I kicked his ass out. I don't think the guys realise how early I have to wake up to get there by 8 am. It takes me at least 20 to 25 minutes just to get to RangeMan from my apartment in the morning peak traffic. Never mind, the time it takes me to shower, shave, dress, and beautify myself before I even leave the apartment. On this particular morning, I arrived at Rangeman at 7:55 am, I rushed into the kitchen to grab a cup of coffee before heading to the meeting. I was patiently waiting for Ram to pour his coffee. He was moving slowly, having a fat chat to Lester and Cal about his previous night's adventures, not even realising I was behind him. When he turned to walk away, I picked up the coffee pot and it was _empty. Empty! _I was furious. I needed coffee to start my brain and my day, and he hadn't even bothered to start a new pot. I didn't have time before the meeting to do it. Needing coffee to start my day, I may have over-reacted slightly. I turned on my heel and growled Ram's name in a tone that gave even me the shivers. Ram, Lester, and Cal immediately stopped and turned around to see me standing with the empty coffee pot in one hand and my loaded Rangeman gun in the other. Pointing my gun straight at Ram's package, I saw the other 2 pale and grab themselves. I don't remember my exact words but I had to find out why he thought he should get the last of the coffee, instead of me. Before I knew it, I had Lester on one side of me and Ranger on the other. The kitchen was a sea of black. Everyone gawking at me.

Needless to say, Ranger proceeded to remove my gun from my hand and replaced it with a cup of freshly brewed coffee (I still wonder where that came from), while Lester got a Tasty Cake from our emergency stash and placed it in my other hand. Morning saved, I thought.

Later that day, Ranger called me into his office with Tank and stated "For the safety of all my employees, I think you can miss morning meetings and start your day at 10 am, Steph. Will that work better for you?"

_**End of Flashback**_

The dip in the bed pulled me from my thoughts. Without opening my eyes, I knew exactly what Lester was doing. The same thing he has done for the past few months. He was removing his shoes and unclipping his utility belt. He placed both on the arm chair next to my bed. He pulled back the covers and climbed into bed. Placing his arm across the top of my pillow, I scotched backward until we were side to side and my head was on his shoulder.

"Morning Beautiful," Lester said with a small smile on his lips.

"Morning Les," I said smiling back at him.

Lester picked up the cup of coffee that had the big 'S' on it and held it out for me. I pushed up a little further on the bed and took my cup of coffee.

Looking down at the 'S' cup in my hand and the 'L' cup in his, a face-splitting-smile appeared. A few weeks ago, Lester and I had been assigned Caleb Harvey to apprehend. He owned a novelty store a few roads up from my apartment. The apprehension was easy, especially with Lester as my partner. Caleb Harvey had decided to work shirtless in his store that day. He was hot and didn't see the point of covering up; but before leaving for the TPD, Lester gave him the option to grab a shirt. He and Lester went into the back and I looked around the store while waiting. When they came out, I was looking through the alphabet mugs. Each mug had a letter in the center with a few associated words around it– some positive and some funny. Forgetting all about it, we took Caleb Harvey down to the TPD. Two days later, Les arrived at my apartment for our normal Friday morning coffee and he had a personalised 'S' mug just for me.

'S' is for …

Sexy; Superwoman ; Sarcastic ; Sassy ; Sincere ; Skinny ; Sleepy ; Smart ; Sneaky ; Sophisticated ; Special ; Spry ; Strong ; Stylish ; Sweet ; Savvy Steph

That morning I wrote the 'L' adjectives that I thought described Lester and took it into Caleb Harvey. 3 days later, when Lester arrived for our Monday morning coffee time, his 'L' mug was sitting next to the coffee pot for him. He ran into my room, dove onto my bed waking me up, and hugged me senseless saying that he loved it.

'L' is for …

Loving ; Lovable ; Looker ; Lazy ; Lascivious; Laudable ; Lax ; Loopy ; Lustful ; Loquacious ; Laugh ; Levelheaded ; Loyal ; Logical ; Large ; Lean ; Loose Lester

"Penny for your thoughts, Beautfiul," brought me out of my thoughts.

"Just thinking about our mugs. I really do love them." Lester squeezed my shoulder, telling me that he agreed, as he took another sip of his coffee.

"So, what are you going to tell me today?" I wondered. Every Monday and Friday morning, Lester comes over to have coffee in bed with me, before we head out for our morning client meetings. On Monday mornings I tell Lester a story, and on Friday mornings he tells me a story. It can be about anything, present or past. Sometimes, the other one requests a certain story and those are always fun. Today, was Lester's turn to tell me a story.

"Well, I actually thought we could swop days today. How about you tell me how last night went with Ranger and on Monday I tell you a new story?" He asked with a shit eating grin on his face.

I punched Lester in his stomach and started laughing.

"Ow! What was that for?" He bellowed, looking at me with wide eyes.

Channeling my inner Ranger, I shouted "Santos!" as Ranger does to warn him.

He both burst out laughing. As if I was going to tell him about Ranger and I's night. It was personal. And besides, Lester would let something slip in front of Ranger and that would be the end of our coffee mornings.

Getting ourselves under control, I admit: "I actually have something I want to share with you. And I'm hoping you will help me with it."

He nodded and I proceeded to tell Lester all about the fight that I had with Joe yesterday, and then about my light-bulb-moment and about me calling it quits. I gave him more details about the change that I wanted to make and watched as he just stared at me in silence. I would say shock, but I'm not sure if Rangemen get shocked.

"Lester. Lester! LESTER!" I shouted at him to try and snap him out of his trance. I suddenly felt dejected.

"You don't think I can do this, do you?" I said in a soft voice, as I felt the dejection flooding into all my senses.

"No! No, Stephanie. Don't think like that! I fully believe in you! I was quiet because I was trying to think how I could express to you, how _extremely_ proud I am of you!" He said in an authoritative tone.

Lester grabbed our empty coffee mugs and sat them on the side table. He sat up straight and turned me slightly so that he could clearly see my face.

After pausing for a second to make sure he had my full attention, Lester said: "I am extremely proud of you, Steph! You are amazing and I can't express how glad I am that you are going to make this change to your life. You deserve the best but keep settling for the bottom of the barrel. I want to help you with this change in any way that I can. I will always support you. And I will always love you, Beautiful!"

Lester leaned over and engulfed me in a bear hug.

"Now, go shower, so we can leave on time." He said before pulling all the blankets off of me and tickling me until I ran from the bedroom.

_**Please continue to review and post comments - I like seeing the feedback. It helps me to organise my thoughts and lets me know where I need to expand on things, or change things**_


	5. Chapter 5 - I need a break

_**Disclaimer: **__** I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story is Naked by Ella Mai.**_

I want to start by sincerely apologizing for how late this new chapter is. We have been on school holidays which means that my house has been overrun with mischievous little nieces and nephews.

I have battled writing this chapter - I have probably rewritten and redrafted it a dozen times by now, so I hope you enjoy the final product. I am excited about what comes next.

Your reviews and comments always brighten my day and inspire me to write a little more. Please keep them coming!

_**Have a great day and Enjoy chapter 5**_

**Naked – Chapter 5**

A loud sigh escapes as my ass hits my comfy office chair. I am exhausted. Well, at least emotionally exhausted. It has been a non-stop rollercoaster of happy, sad, overwhelming excitement, a little dread, lots of nerves and whatever else over the past 2, maybe 3 days. I have gone from pure excitement and pride when catching my skip; to anger at Joe; back to excitement for my new self; back to nervousness about my confession to Ranger and agreeing to meet his family.

Turning around to face my desk, I sneak a quick look at my in-tray and see the pile of searches that have been added. It's going to take me hours. I might as well get to it. I open the first file, read the bare details that I've been given and type the name into my three search programmes. While that's running, I lean my head back, close my eyes and realise that I need a break. I need a holiday. I can't remember the last time I packed a bag; left work behind and just spent a few days relaxing. I let my mind wander for a while. It would need to be somewhere warm. Somewhere close to the beach. Somewhere that is far enough away that I won't bump into any Burg-ers. Mmm… sounds nice, sounds perfect. I could go for a walk along the beach. And a swim. Yup, definitely a swim. I could ... mmm… I could… Damn it! It has been so long I don't even know what people do on holiday anymore.

My computer pinging rudely interrupts my day dreaming and brings me back to reality. I start the next search, while having a thorough look through the information that I got on the first one. I hear hurried footsteps rushing towards me, and I raise my head just in time to see a very excited Lester and Bobby bounding towards me. Lester sweeps me out of my chair before both him and Bobby squish me in a bear / sandwich hug. In between kisses and tickles and further squishes, I can hear mumbling coming from them, but I can't make out any words over my giggling and squealing.

"Santos! Brown! Put her down. Let her breathe!", booms Ranger.

The tickling and kisses get worse, before I hear Ranger shout their names again.

"Santos! Brown! NOW!"

I'm immediately placed back on my feet and freed enough to catch my breath and straighten myself up. Neither one, fully leaving me alone though; but rather flanking me, each keeping an arm around my shoulders. Lester was still slightly bouncing up and down, like a little kid needing to pee; and Bobby had a massive smile that could rival Ranger's 1000 watt one and make any girl forget her name. I turned around slowly, making sure I could see both of them clearly. I have no idea what's going on.

I didn't have to wait long to find out either. I aimed my Burg glare at the 2 boys and they broke within seconds.

"Ranger told us that you're coming down to Miami with us for the Baptism," Bobby stated.

"And you're going to meet the family," Lester added in a high-school peppy voice. I was just waiting for the 'ooooo' noises and kissy faces to follow, but Ranger appeared at my side within seconds, so both boys stopped themselves just short of the childish acts.

Ranger took my hand in his and kissed my knuckles, before adding, "That's if you still want to come and meet my family."

"Please, Steph! Please come." Lester and Bobby started begging.

I ignored the boys begging and raised my arms until they were wrapped around Ranger's neck. As if it were a year-long habit, Ranger instinctively wrapped his arm around my waist, pulling me closer to him. I kissed him lightly on the cheek and then answered, "Of course I still want to go. I actually have an idea and was hoping to speak to you and the 3 guys about it when you have some free time."

Ranger moved his free hand into my hair and kissed me for all I was worth. Seconds before I passed out from a lack of oxygen, he releases my lips, slowly removes his hand from my hair, and gently guides me to his office, saying "We are all free right now."

Ranger leads me into his office and around his desk to his chair. He sits me down in his chair and perches himself on the corner of his desk, never releasing my hand. We sit, Ranger making random patterns on my hand with his thumb, in comfortable silence waiting for Bobby, Lester and Tank to join us. I'm assuming they stopped to tell Tank what is going on.

Before I even have all my thoughts in order for this proposal, I have 4 sets of curious eyes watching me bite my lower lip.

"Babe, the floor is yours."

I stand up, square my shoulders and look at the four amazing men sitting in front of me. Each one of them looks a little tired in their own way. Ranger hasn't had a break since he came back from his last mission; Tank and Lester are exhausted from running Rangeman while Ranger was away; and Bobby has been flying back and forth doing the annual medical evaluations in all the branches. That piece of information gives me added confidence that they will agree to my idea.

"When was the last time the four of you went on holiday? And I mean completely left work behind for a few days and just unwound and relaxed?"

Everyone is looking very puzzled. I know they will try to figure out where I am going with this, before they will even think about replying. But, I actually want an answer from each of them before I continue, so I press further.

"Tank and Lester, you are both exhausted from running Rangeman for the past few months; and then continued working on the plans for the new branch. When was the last time you took an actual holiday?" I query, looking at the two boys for an answer.

"Bobby, you have barely slept or even had a day to yourself since starting the annual medical evaluations in the different branches. When was the last time you took a few days off to relax and rejuvenate?" I ask, looking at a dark-eyed Bobby.

"And Ranger, I can only imagine what you experienced on your last mission and how little sleep you got. Since you've arrived back, you haven't stopped for more than a few moments, taking back the running of Rangeman. When was the you spent a day doing anything other than work? When was the last time you turned your phone off for more than 2 hours?"

The four guys exchange concerned, then sympathetic looks at each other, releasing for the first time that the four of them are actually exhausted, worn out and none of them even noticed the tell-tale signs on each other.

"Not in a very long time, Bomber." Bobby finally responds, with the other 3 nodding in agreement.

"You already know that Ranger asked me to join you guys down in Miami for his nephew's baptism next weekend. And that I agreed to go. He also said that the three of you are coming with. I know that _I_ need a break too. The last few days have been exhausting."

I take a quick pause to reflect on the last few days and Lester, Bobby and Tank each respond with a form of happiness and approval that I'm coming with. Old Stephanie would have been worried that I was intruding on Ranger's family time, and that the other three wouldn't want a girl, especially his white girl from the Burg, tagging along. But the new Stephanie is not letting the doubt in. She is taking the boys at the words quite literally that they are excited for me to be joining them, and that Ranger wants me to come along and meet his family. So I press on.

"I was thinking… um… instead of flying down to Miami, we could take a road trip down to Miami instead. We could leave on Tuesday morning and travel down slowly, staying somewhere on Wednesday and Thursday night, and arriving in Miami on Friday for the baptism on Saturday afternoon." I have to hold up my hands to stop a very excited and enthusiastic Lester and Bobby from interrupting me, before I continue, "I don't know how much time we could take off, but I would be very keen on spending a few days in Miami too, after the baptism. I've never been there before and I would love to see the city and Julie too. "

I dropped my hands and suddenly felt extremely nervous about what they would think about my suggestion. I walked slowly back towards Ranger's chair and before I could get there, Bobby and Lester were already whispering mischievously to each other.

Ranger and Tank did there ESP trick of communicating with their eyes only. I had no idea what their decision was or what Bobby and Lester were whispering about. I felt like I was about to explode with anticipation. Without even thinking, I leaned over in the chair and retook Ranger's hand in mine. He pulled our joint hands up to his mouth, kissed them gently and cleared his throat. Everybody quietened quickly, even the two kids.

"Steph, I think I speak for everyone when I say that we would love to join you for a road trip down to Miami. I can't promise that we will be able to spend too long there afterwards though. I think this will be a great opportunity to see how the 'A Team' does at running Rangeman when the entire Core Team are gone."

Tank immediately starts nodding and confirms Rangers thoughts with "I agree. We can also assess there strengths and weaknesses through this practice run. It'll allow us to see what additional training and practice they need for when the entire core team are on a mission."

Tank's words send a shiver down my spine. The thought of Ranger going on another mission scares me, but then I normally have Lester, Bobby and Tank who try and keep me sane. I don't know what I would do if all four of them left for a mission – Trenton and my life just wouldn't be the same.

Ranger feels the shiver go through me and the concern that is now plastered on my face. Before I can concentrate too long on those thoughts, he suggests, "Why don't you, Lester and Bobby start planning the logistics of going down, and Tank and I will discuss the logistics of running Rangeman."

With that, Lester and Bobby jump out of their chairs (not that they were really sitting in them with all the excited bouncing they were already doing), each grabbing me and pulling me from Ranger's office. We make our way back to my cubicle, where they each pull out a chair and make themselves comfortable. The afternoon passes quickly with us planning next week's adventure. And I am honestly glad that I embraced my new self courage and suggested this break to the guys.


	6. Chapter 6 - I need you

_**Disclaimer: **__**I don't own any of the characters - they all belong to Janet. The song that inspired this story is Naked by Ella Mai.**_

First, I want to apologize for not explaining in Chapter 4 that Steph had turned her phone off - I had it in my draft but somehow lost it in the final - I have had a few messages asking about that. But i's explained further in this chapter.

I have battled writing this chapter - I knew what I wanted and I hope that we have gotten there.

Thank you for all the great reviews. I love reading what you think.

_**Have a great day and Enjoy chapter 6!**_

**Naked – Chapter 6**

The afternoon of planning passed in a quick blur. When most people see Lester and Bobby walking on the street, they either see two threatening thugs and immediately cross the street to get away from them; or they see two gorgeous male specimens and start conjuring up a plan to get them to bed. No one sees the two boys that I saw this afternoon. The ones that get excited about planning a trip away. A couple of times this afternoon, I caught myself sitting back watching them and feeling a full-body sensation of happiness, contentment and pure joy. It was hard for me to place those feelings at first – I don't think I have ever felt like this before.

A gentle nudge from Lester's elbow into my side, brought me from my musings with a "Huh? I missed that last part."

"I asked – Are we happy with the final plans then? No more arguing from you?" Lester questioned in mock agitation.

"Yup. All happy. Very happy in fact." I agreed, as I felt a pair of familiar hands land on my shoulders and gently massage away a little tension.

"Care to share the plan, Babe?"

"Yup." It was my turn to start bouncing excitedly on my chair. "We are going to leave early Wednesday morning, and travel down to Raleigh, North Carolina, where we can stay overnight. Then Thursday, we can travel down to Savannah and spend the night there. If we leave early enough on Thursday morning, maybe we could spend some time exploring Savannah when we get there. Then, finally, on Friday we will travel through to Miami. We should be there by early afternoon."

"Perfect, Babe." Ranger confirms, at the same time dismissing Bobby and Lester with some eye communication. Both of them quickly stand up, picking up all the sweet wrappers, muffin papers and sandwich containers this afternoon's planning session took. With a gentle peck to my cheek and a hug from them both, they were gone.

Ranger sat down in Lester's deserted seat and took my hand in his.

"I'm sorry we couldn't leave on Wednesday." Ranger says, sincerity evident in his eyes.

"That's fine. I'm actually quite excited about the team building event on Tuesday night. And I get why you'd want to be here the next day to make sure everyone and everything is ok before we leave."

"I wanted to make sure you understand. And that it is _not_ because I don't want to spend that time with you." Ranger admits quickly, a little out of character for him. But then again, us talking openly about our feelings is a new concept for both of us.

"Thanks." We both sit in comfortable silence for a moment, reveling in the fact that this may just work if we can remain this honest and sincere with each other.

"What are your plans for this evening?" I ask, breaking the silence. My stomach is starting to quietly protest its emptiness.

"I was actually coming in here to ask if you wanted to have dinner on 7 with me. How about ordering in from that Chinese restaurant that you love?"

There was no way that I could hide the shock and surprise that is clearly evident on my face. Since when does Ranger offer to have take outs in his apartment. No way! I've definitely broken him.

Ranger reaches out his hand, gently cupping my jaw, closing it. "We wouldn't want you to swallow a fly." He quirks with a smirk on his face.

I quickly learn over and shut down my computer, grab my bag throwing everything I need into it, and scramble to my feet. I grab Ranger's hand and start pulling him out of my cubicle and towards the elevator. I'm not going to give him a chance to change his mind now.

As we round the corner, the control room is full as its change of shifts. It doesn't deter or slow me down, until I hear everyone stop and then an explosion of laughter - the belly rumbling, tear jerking, type of laughter. I stop to see what is so funny, only to grasp that the sea of black are laughing at us. I quickly realise what it must look like - a breathless me pulling a smirking Ranger to the elevator with my 7th floor key fob in my hand.

My cheeks turn a hot, burning red and I feel a strong need to explain myself, for them to understand what is happening. "Guys, it's not like that!"

The laughing only goes up a level and the burning sensation in my cheeks gets worse. "I promise it isn't." But at this point, I don't even think they can hear me over their laughter.

I look up at Ranger, who is now standing at my side, with his hand on the small of back, showing me his support. Through my eyes I try to convey to him the importance for them to understand that it isn't what they think. They are my brothers, my friends. I don't want them thinking about me and Ranger like that. I need them to understand.

Maybe ESP actually _does_ work because suddenly Ranger was clearing his throat. Quickly the entire floor came to attention and the laughter stopped abruptly. Ranger looked down at me, "The floor is yours."

"I know what it looked like, but guys, it's not like that at all. Ranger offered to order in Chinese and eat on 7. I didn't want to give him the chance to change his mind. That is what you saw."

The laughter started all over and a smile returned to my face. I was happy that I could give these rough exterior men something to smile about, as long as they understood what was happening.

I smiled up at Ranger, and he took my hand, leading me back towards the elevator and to my Chinese dinner on 7.

When we got up to 7, I called the Chinese restaurant to order, while Ranger placed a blanket on the living room floor with a few candles and some throw pillows. When I walked into the living room the sight before me was breathtaking. Ranger was lounging on the blanket in a pair of jeans, a light grey sweater and socks. He looked so relaxed and so cute – nope, great – nope, amazing – nah, still not, maybe delicious. Not sure if any word I know quite describes him and that gorgeous image I now have of him.

I ditched my shoes and joined Ranger on the blanket. He immediately moved closer and brought his hand up to cup my face. Before gently kissing me he said, "You are amazing, Steph!"

The kiss quickly deepened and by the time we pulled apart I was gasping for air.

"Not that I'm complaining, because I'm _not, _but is that what we're going to spend the night doing – making out, I mean."

"Babe."

That one word answer got a smile out of me, before Ranger continued, "After last night's confession from you about breaking up with Morelli and wanting to find someone that can love you for you and vice versa, I thought that we could use tonight to talk, to get to know each other a little better."

For the second time that day, my mouth dropped open and I stared at him in shock and love. I can only imagine how difficult it must have been for Ranger to open up – after years of training that tells you to hide your feelings and emotions from everyone because they really can get you killed, this change was the most unexpected.

"Thank you!" were all the words I could manage.

"Babe, I'll start." Ranger quirks. All of sudden butterflies appear in my stomach and my hands start to sweat – I'm nervous. Ranger immediately notices the change in my body language, and readjusts our positions – I am now lying comfortably on the blanket with a pillow behind my head, and Ranger is on his side right next to me with his head resting on a raised elbow and his other hand resting on my stomach, drawing random soft patterns.

"Remember, I trust you and you trust me. We are trying to be open, but if you don't want to answer something you just say so. I won't take offence. Ok?"

"Okay. I do trust you and I can't imagine myself not wanting to tell you everything, so let's go. Ask away."

"Easy one – where's your phone? When I called you this morning your phone went straight to voicemail."

"Ah shit!" With that exclamation I jump up and run over to my bag, remove my phone from inside and bring it back to the blanket.

Sitting down on the blanket I explain, "After I spoke to you yesterday afternoon and arranged to come over, the burg started phoning about my break-up with Morelli. I really didn't feel like dealing with it, so I turned my phone off. I knew that it would be ok for last night and this morning because I was with you and Lester, so if anyone wanted to really get a hold of me, they could phone Rangeman. When I got back to Rangeman after the client appointments, I was suppose to turn it back on, but I forgot. I suppose I got caught up in the excitement of our holiday…"

I sit staring at the phone in my hand. I know when I turn this phone back on, I will be inundated with horrible texts and voice messages.

Ranger senses my unease and takes the phone from my hands, "Let me, please." I nod my head slightly and Ranger turns the phone on. Within seconds, the phone starts pinging and pinging and remains that way for at least a minute or two. When we hear the last ping, I feel Ranger's body tense. His jaw is set and the fire in his eyes is scary.

I peek over Ranger's shoulder to see 47 text messages, 68 missed calls and a full voicemail box of 20 messages. I move to take the phone from his hands but he shakes his head, "Do you always get harassed like this when you break up with Morelli?"

"Yes," I say, unsure of how to justify or continue with my answer.

"Babe," Ranger places his finger under my chin and raises my face until I am looking into his eyes, "Do you _**want**_ to read or listen to these messages?"

I think about my answer before answering, "No, not really, but I have to anyway."

"No, you don't." Ranger turns the phone back off and opens the back to remove the sim card. He places the sim on the coffee table and takes out his phone to send off a text message. "When you leave there will be a new sim card waiting for us at reception. It is a Rangeman number so it is not listed. The only people that will have that number are the core team and anyone you give the number to. Is that ok?"

"Thank you, Ranger." Again, those seem to be the only words I can manage before a single tear falls from my eyes and I angrily wipe it away. I hate how much control the burg has over my state of mind and emotions. Ranger doesn't say anything, he just leans over and pulls me back into our position on the floor.

"Your turn, Babe. Ask away!"

"Anything, right?"

"Is that your question?" Ranger asks with one eyebrow raised.

"No! No! You can't do that! I was just checking."

"Babe! Go on, ask me anything." The smile on Ranger's face could melt any girls heart, yet here he is sitting in front of me, giving me full access. And that was going to be my question.

"I suppose it's more than one question but I really want to understand and want to know." I say, becoming nervous again, what if I don't like the answer? In my mind, I quickly reprimand myself, the new Steph, for thinking like that, for being negative – it's a question, I am finding out more about Ranger so that I can make an informed decision about my life later down the path.

"Ok, Here it goes. I know that you can't talk about your missions, but something happened of this last mission that changed you, that changed us. What happened?

And then, to go with that, Why me? Why are you here with me? You could have any girl you want, why are you spending time with me? I suppose it goes hand in hand with the next part too – what do you want with me? You have told me in so many different ways that your life doesn't lend itself to relationships, and that you can't offer me a ring or a commitment, so what do you want?"

And before I know it, I have blurted it _all_ out. I have asked him every important question all in one really long breath. And suddenly, I realise that all I can hear is silence. A deafening silence, as I wait for his reply. My heart instantly starts to race, the butterflies in my stomach have stepped it up and turned into birds. My eyes suddenly find the shelves in the far distant corner fascinating. Until I hear a knock on the door. Our food. Damn our food. Why now? I need my answer, I can't wait like this. It's torture! Pure torture.

Ranger kisses my forehead before standing to fetch our food. I hear him thank the Rangeman who brought it up. He returns to the livingroom and starts unpacking the food.

"Steph, I can't tell you too much about the mission, but I'll try to explain. The mission was going very well, we had carried out the main objective and retrieved an additional package in the process. We were on our way back to the extraction point, when we came upon a different group of unfriendlies. We ensued in a fire fight and one of my men got hit. Sam. But we managed to take down the group of 7 assailants and get back to the helo with our injured man. The nearest hospital was a navy ship about 3 hours away." Ranger isn't hiding anything on his face today, and I can see the pain, regret and full sadness. I immediately know that this story isn't going to have the happy ending that I so desperately want for him.

"Sam and I go way back. We went through Ranger school together and have served on many a mission together too. When I started Rangeman, I offered him a position on the core team but he decided to stay in the Army on active duty."

From Ranger's eyes, I can see that he is no longer in the present but rather right there on that helicopter with Sam. "We tried to stabilize Sam the best we could on the helo. We packed his wound with all the Quik-clot gauze that we had, but he was still losing blood. Sam was gripping my hand so tight. For a moment, I forgot that there were 4 other guys on the chopper with us. Sam started talking … I think he could see how scared I was of losing him … of losing yet another great friend." A tear runs down Ranger's cheek.

"Sam started talking about Anne, saying that lying here now, knowing that this was the end, there was only one thing that he regretted, one thing that mattered more than anything else to him. He was sorry that he hadn't asked Anne to marry him. That he hadn't told her that she was his everything. That she was more important than the army to him."

"He said that he had told her that he needed to finish his contract before he committed, because he didn't want to commit to her and then go on a mission and not come home. He felt that it would be unfair and torture to her. But instead, he had broken her heart, caused her so much pain, and now she was going to be mourning a man that she had no idea loved her with his whole heart, with everything that he had." A few more tears run down Ranger's cheeks and I lean up to wipe them away.

Ranger removes my hands from his face, kissing the palm of each one, before placing his hands gently around my face, forcing me to stare straight into his eyes and see that there is no blank face, only love and sincerity in his face.

"I didn't want to make the same mistake as Sam. I didn't want to have the same regrets." Ranger admits around the lump in his throat. "Have I ever lied to you, Steph?"

"No."

"Do you think I would start now with these questions?"

"No." I say with full honesty.

"Ok. So I need you to believe me when I tell you that I love you, Steph! I love you! I love you with everything. You are my life. I love you. And I have for a long time and it scared me, and I know that you know how that feels, because I think that you love me too, but it scares you. The difference is in how we dealt with it. The feelings that I started feeling towards you made me feel vulnerable and weak and I hated how that left me feeling. I didn't want to ever feel vulnerable and weak like that again, so I thought that pushing you away would be best for both of us. They were lies, Steph. Lies that I told myself and lies that I told you to push you away."

"Things have changed. I have changed. I realized that no matter how much I pushed you away, the way I felt about you never changed. Instead, I started feeling jealous and angry towards Morelli and your family. Resentment built within. I was envious of Morelli at times for what he could have with you. I started dreaming, wishing for a life with you. And on that chopper, I realized that I would do anything, give up anything, feel any amount of vulnerability and weakness, to have you."

"So, what do I want? I want you. All of you! I want anything that I can have with you. Not long after your sister had Lisa, did I see you holding Lisa, and I found myself thinking about what our kids would look like – about how beautiful you would look pregnant – and what it would be like coming home to you every night. And I found myself planning that, planning a life that had you in it. Because I love you, Stephanie!"


End file.
